1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system whereby an unattended vehicle passenger, such as an infant or a toddler or even a pet, is detected prior to harm befalling the passenger from temperature extremes.
2. Background of the Prior Art
As hard as it is for many to fathom, the number of small children left unattended in vehicles is quite alarming. While most such incidents of leaving a small child or even a pet unattended, terminate without any undue harm, on some occasions, the passenger can suffer serious injury or death, typically from hyperthermia, but also from hypothermia for wintertime unattandance.
When a body's core temperature reaches about 104 degrees Fahrenheit, heat stroke sets in as the body's thermoregulatory system starts to become overwhelmed. Once the body's core temperature reaches about 107 degrees Fahrenheit, death occurs as cells are severely damaged and organs fail. On a sunny day, the interior temperature of a vehicle can rise 30 degrees or more above the ambient temperature in about 20 minutes, with cracking of the window having almost no effect on the temperature rate of increase. A body, especially a young body of an infant or toddler, can quickly succumb to the heat effects within the interior of an unattended car.
Leaving a passenger unattended typically happens in one of three ways. Sometimes, a parent or guardian intends to make a quick stop, such as the grocery store, and wants to run in, get a few items and return to the vehicle. The parent or guardian may not want to go through the trouble of unbuckling the child from his or her car seat and thereafter buckle the child back up; or the parent or guardian may not want to disturb a sleeping child. In either case, the adult either gets distracted from the original task and spends more time away from the vehicle, or simply does not appreciate how quickly the temperature can rise (or fall) in the unattended vehicle.
The second type of situation involves the parent or guardian who simply forgets that they are transporting a child in the vehicle and leaves the child in the vehicle unattended, often for hours. This latter situation is responsible for the majority of child deaths from being left unattended.
A third type of situation involving children who have died from heat stroke in a vehicle is when a child gains access to an unattended vehicle and is thereafter unable to extricate himself or herself from the vehicle.
While leaving a child unattended in a vehicle for any amount of time is unthinkable to most rational people, such neglect does happen, resulting in dozens of child deaths each year, and countless pet deaths as well. In all cases, the death of the child is both tragic and avoidable.
In order to address this problem, systems have been developed that deal with an unattended passenger within a vehicle. Such systems, which range from the very simple to the very complex, come in a multitude of architectures relying on various methods for passenger detection and work with varying degrees of success. However, prior art systems suffer from certain drawbacks.
Some systems are exceedingly complex in design and/or installation, often requiring a factory trained professional to install the device and integrate the device into the vehicle's computer system. Not only are such systems cost-prohibitive, many automotive manufacturers are reluctant to assist in such device installations. Other devices simply have too many false detections. While rescuing a child from a hot unattended vehicle is desirable, improperly rolling down the windows and possibly even starting the vehicle due to a false detection may not prove acceptable to a vehicle owner, especially if an opportunistic thief happens upon the vehicle prior to the owner or law enforcement arriving on scene.
What is needed is a system that is able to detect the presence of an unattended passenger within a vehicle while addressing the above mentioned shortcomings found in the art. Such a system must be able to detect the presence of an unattended passenger within a vehicle, wherein the temperature of the interior of the vehicle is approaching or has exceeded a threshold temperature (either too hot or too cold) and issues an appropriate alarm, while substantially decreasing the possibility of false detections which lead to inappropriate alarms. The system must be operable as a standalone system, yet should be able to integrate with certain subsystems of the vehicle without the need to hardwire the system to the vehicle's computer.